Sainthwar Malla Rajput Community History

Sainthwar-Malla-Rajput is a group of warrior (kshatriya / Rajput) landholding clans settled primarily in eastern Uttar Pradesh. They rose to prominence in late Vedic period, established oligarchy system as ganas or sanghas and remained a strong force till defeat by Magadha Empire in 5 th century BC. After defeat and under an arrangement, the group continued to control the local administrations of their territory in coming years and in return paid taxes or revenues to their respective monarchs. The group was recorded as one of the four landholding castes in the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh in the census of British India.

The Sainthwar-Malla-Rajput population is thickly settled in Gorakhpur, Maharajganj, Kushinagar and Deoria districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, India, the prosperity of which was at peak between 3 rd century BC till 5 th century AD i.e. from the period of Mauryas till Guptas. Small population is settled in Basti, Mau, western Bihar and Kapilvastu, Rupandehi, Nawalparasi and Chitwan districts of Terai Belt of Nepal. The ancestors of this group were closely associated with Buddha and Mahavira and participated in rebellion against Emperor Jahangir in 1626 AD, against East India Company in 1760 -1795 AD and in Indian Rebellion of 1857. They find their mention in epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. They shared similar socio-religious history, of Gorakhpur and adjacent regions, with Bhumihar Brahmins and latter with Guru Gorakhnath.

1. Etymology of Word Malla – Sainthwar-Rajput

2. Clans and their ancestry

3. Physical features, settlements and population

4. Economic status

5. Status in Varna / caste system

6. History

6.11 In Vedic sources and epics Ramayana and Mahabharata

6.12 The ruling clans of Malla Mahajanpada and Malla gana-sangha

6.13 The ruling clans of other ganas or sanghas

6.14 Political structure and functioning

6.15 Supremacy in the society of ganas

6.16 Association with Buddha and Mahavira

6.17 Political fall

6.18 Religious inclination of the Kshatriya assemblies

6.19 As Vratya Kshatriyas in Manusmiriti

6.20 Religious hostility from orthodox Brahmins and Kshatriyas

6.21 Fall of Buddhism and merger with Orthodox Brahmanism

6.22 As Visen (Bisen) Kshatriyas of Madhuban

6.221 Raja Nattha Malla in the courts of Jahangir as Majhauli representative

6.241 Dubari Rai participating in Indian rebellion of 1857 – the Kachhi Fansi

6.25 Social grouping of the Bisens of Madhuban, the Gaharwars of Padrauna and the

Rajputs associated with Mahabat Khan's rebellion

6.26 Clubbing of Bisens, Gaharwars and Rajputs with Malla-Sainthwar Kshatriyas in the census of British India

7. References

1.0 Etymology of word Malla – Sainthwar-Rajput:

The literal meaning of Malla (Sanskrit / Hindi – ???? ) is wrestler, boxer and athlete [1] . The traditional wrestling game is referred as Malla-yuddha in the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. Laxmana gave Malla epithet to his son Chandraketu as he was master in wrestling [2] . As an honorary title, it was first used by the descendants of Chandraketu.

The etymology of Sainthwar is related to the political structure and functioning of ganas or sanghas wherein the power was vested in the hands (group or assembly) of an aristocracy comprising the head of leading Kshatriya families. The functioning was conducted in a council hall / assembly house known as Santhagara (Hindi – ??????? ; ???? + ???? ) [3] [4] . The assembly members were known as Rajas and their sons as Kumaras (Kunwar or Princes) [5] . The word Sainthwar is evolved from Santha-Vara (Hindi – ?????? ) which is a distorted form of Sanskrit word Sanstha-vara (transliteration – SaMsthavara) . The “S anstha or SaMstha” means assembly and the “Vara” means Royal, princely, excellent, foremost [6] . The Sainthwar means the assembly of elite / royal / princely families. The suffix “vara” (distorted form “war”; ????? – ?? / ??? ) is commonly found in clan or caste names of many communities; eg. Some Bhumihar Brahmin clan names are Donwar, Kinwar, Kistwar, Sakarwar, Sonwar, Benwar, Barwar, Purvar etc.

(29…..37) Usakha, Raivansh, Bhakkarvansh, Chautisha (Kaushik), Janwar, Darve (Davi), Motipurwa, Inrapari, Gahanha; (Ancestry – The chandravanshi populations migrated from the adjacent regions of ganas or sanghas who all aligned with the Mallas of Kusinara due to their similar religious inclinations)

The large population (nearly 85%) of the group has its ancestry from the ancient Kshatriyas of gana -sangha who belonged to Suryavanshi, Chandravanshi and Nagvanshi sect. The Suryavanshi and Chandravanshi families were of Caucasian race (the Indo-Europeans). The Nagvanshi families, the Koliyas, were of Australoid race (the Dravidians). The Himalayan foothills and hilly areas witnessed settlement of mongoloids by 1000 BC. The large population of the group, therefore, carries mixed physical feature of Caucasian, Dravidian and Mongoloid with Dravidian physical feature dominating the population.

The small population (nearly 15%) has its ancestry from the Kshatriya and Rajput families of Madhav Malla, his two sons Nattha Malla, Fateh Bahadur Malla and their associated kin, the Gaharwars of Kantit Raj and those associated with Mahabat Khan's 1626 AD rebellion. These populations belong to Caucasian race (the Indo-Europeans). Due to the social relations with Malla-Sainthwars, established in early-mid 20 th century, the population started showing Dravidian physical feature to some extent.

The group population is thickly settled in Gorakhpur, Maharajganj, Kushinagar and Deoria districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, India. Small population is settled in Basti, Mau, western Bihar and Kapilvastu, Rupandehi, Nawalparasi and Chitwan districts of Terai Belt of Nepal, refer Fig.1 [12] .

The total population of community in India is projected at 5,43,000 in year 2011 with approximate Malla titled populations at 25,000; Sainthwar at 4,50,000; BisenMall at 1,000; Gaharwar or Raikar at 1,000; and Rajput's associated with Mahabat Khan's rebellion at 80,000 [13] . The population can go up by 5-10% if thin population settled in Nepal is considered. The projected population in year 2011 is based on the population growth of India, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and the combined districts of Gorakhpur – Maharajganj which grew by 5.07, 4.31, 5.0 and 4.89 times respectively from 1901 till 2011 AD [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] . The community population, as per various censuses of British India, is given in Table 1. The average population strength of community in Gorakhpur, Maharajganj, Deoria and Kushinagar districts is 4%.

Table 1: The group population in United Provinces of Agra and Oudh - the censuses of British India [19] [20] [21] [22]

Census Year

Sainthwar

Mall in Mau

Male Population

Female Population

Comment

1865

59,823

2,573

1881

3,218

1911

1,19,086

60,412

58,674

Mall population clubbed with Sainthwar Population in Census returns.

1921

1,23,424

63,408

60,016

1931

1,29,732

2011*

5,43,000

300 BC*

30,000-60,000

1,250-2,500

* Projected population of the community

4.0 Economic Status

The community remained economically strong since the time of Mahajanpadas and ganas / sanghas till abolition of zamindari system in Independent India. The census of British India recorded 35 castes in the United provinces of Agra and Oudh who earned their livelihood from agriculture or related activities. Only 4 castes, Bhumihar, Rajput, Sainthwar and Tyagi (Taga) were recorded as the landholding castes [23] . The landholding status was also recorded in the “Gorakhpur District Settlement Report (Tehsil Padrauna, Hata and Deoria) page 41, year 1919 and Gorakhpur District Settlement Report (western portion), page 8, year 1919” [24] [25] [26] . The factors like, high dependency on agriculture, low inclination towards education, negligible business orientation and lower participation in political power due to low population, resulted in decline of their economic status by late 20 th century.

In Gorakhpur and the adjoining districts, Brahmins, Kshatriyas / Rajputs, Bhumihars and Sainthwars were considered the elite castes. The elite status changed significantly in the regions far away from Gorakhpur, especially in Bihar, where their population is thin and scattered. The Sainthwar population, like Bhumihar population, has dual status in the Varna or caste ladder. The Bhumihars have Brahmin ancestry but they are considered a rank below by the orthodox Brahmins and thus dual status of Brahmin and Kshatriya. The 1865 Census of North-Western Provinces, wherein the advisors to British officers on caste hierarchy were mostly orthodox Brahmins, captured this phenomenon about Bhumihar Brahmins, refer Table 2 [19] . Like Bhumihars, the Sainthwars have Kshatriya ancestry but the orthodox Brahmins considered them a rank below the orthodox Kshatriyas. The community, therefore, has a dual status of Kshatriya and agricultural caste in Varna or caste ladder. The same is captured in saying “banle ka Malla, bigrale ka Kurmi” which means if prosperous, orthodox Brahmins will treat them as Malla (equivalent to Kshatriya) but when poor, they will treat them as Kurmi [27] . The dual status was justified by creating stories that traced ancestry of the Bisen Kshatriyas and the Malla population of Sainthwar from the common Brahmin father Mayur Bhatt but mothers of different Varna [28] . Similar stories were also floated about Bhumihar Brahmins justifying their dual status in society.

The dual status or the confusion in caste status of Sainthwars was captured in the census of 1865. It classified and recorded the community as Kurmi - Sainthwar than merging it with other populations or communities known as Kurmi in Gorakhpur province. It recorded the Malla population in Azamgarh province as distinct caste [19] . The early censuses (pre 1911) started by British classified the Indian population based on their occupation. It did not consider other factors like social relations and inter-dining, social rituals or customs (child / widow marriage, dowry etc.), difference between landholders, small farmers and land-laborers and so on while deciding the caste of a person or group [29] . As British took help of orthodox Brahmins for classification of population on caste scale, it left a room for great manipulation suiting the benefits of orthodox Brahmins and allied castes, which is also echoed by eminent scholar Mr. Kevin Hobson [30] . The censuses of 1881, 1891 and 1901, therefore, clubbed the Sainthwar population with Kurmi population considering their similar agricultural occupation but neglecting their landholding status and other social parameters like non-allowance of widow remarriage. The official caste status of Sainthwars (and Bhumihars) was corrected in the Census of 1911 by British officers after receipt of correction requests supported by discoveries made during archeological excavations and texts related to Buddhist era. The population was recorded as “Sainthwar” caste in the censuses of 1911, 1921 and in the last caste based census of 1931, refer Table 1 [20] [21] [22] . With availability of more historical materials and their interpretations, the Brahmanical biasness was corrected in the year 1942 by District Magistrate of Gorakhpur, E. D. C. Mass, and the Sainthwars were officially recognized as Kshatriyas [31] [32] [33] [34] [35] . Although the errors were rectified in the later censuses of 1911, 1921 and 1931, which were considered reasonably accurate by the census superintendents, Sainthwars remained a population broken away from their parent agricultural caste in academic sense for the scholars of non – Gorakhpur region and also for the scholars belonging to agricultural castes. The dual status of Sainthwar Kshatriyas (and the Bhumihar Brahmins) has its origin in hostility of orthodox Brahmins towards them. The hostility was due to non-sharing of their political and economic power with orthodox Brahmins from the period of Gana – Sangha and their Buddhist ancestry (as Vratya).

Table 2 – The Census of North – Western Provinces, 1865 and Bhumihar caste in different varna

Provinces

Population

Category

Goruckpore (Gorakhpur)

30739

Brahmin (Bhooenhar)

Azimgurh (Azamgarh)

44642

Kshatriya (Bhooenhar)

Mirzapore (Mirzapur)

4241

Kshatriya (Bhoonheear)

Benares (Banaras)

21460

Brahmin (Bhooinhar)

In 1994 AD, the Sainthwar leaders used the early censuses of British India to reclassify the community from Kshatriya castes to agricultural Kurmi-Sainthwar caste. The idea was to get reservation benefits without breaking the social fabric in which Sainthwars have no social relations with Kurmi populations. Before this in 1989, the reservation benefits extended to the Mall-Sainthwar caste was challenged citing their Kshatriya ancestry [36] . It shall be noted that the Kurmi populations is almost 3 times of Sainthwar populations in Gorakhpur and adjoining districts (12% vs 4%); a number big enough to lure political leaders of both communities to push for the social merger of both communities and exploit the political benefits arising out of it. The attempts of social merger of Sainthwars with Kurmis, however, remained unsuccessful till now.

6. History

The history of the community, in and around Gorakhpur region, can be traced from the late Vedic period. They find their mention in epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. They were closely associated with Buddha and Mahavira and participated in rebellion against Emperor Jahangir in 1626 AD, against East India Company in 1760 -1795 AD and in the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

6.11 In Vedic sources and epics Ramayana, Mahabharata [32]

In the early Vedic sources, the “Malla” word is used only in the sense of professional wrestlers and not for any tribe. It therefore indicates absence of any such tribe by that period. Later, t he epics Ramayana and Mahabharata mention Videhas and Mallas. The Ramayana refers Videha tribe when Rama entered into matrimonial alliance with Vaidehi (Sita / Maithili), the daughter of Raja Seeradhwaja, who was 21 st Janaka of Mithila. The Mahabharata mentions the tribe when Videha prince participated in the swayamvara of Draupadi and when Bhima conquered them during Rajasuya yajna of Yudhisthra.

Based on the epic descriptions, it is claimed that a group of warrior Aryans (the Malla) arrived in the region after Videha lot of Aryans were already settled. They were known as Malla after the epithet of their King Chandraketu alias Malla. The Ramayana mentions Lakshmana using Malla epithet for his younger son Chandraketu as he was master in wrestling. According to commentary in Valmiki Ramayana, the first ancestor of Lakshmana's family was Ikshvaku. The 26 th descendant of Ikshvaku was King Dashratha. He had four sons namely Rama, Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrughana. In the later part of life, Rama divided the entire kingdom in his sons and nephews. In the arrangement, the two sons of Bharata got the country of Gandhara situated on the banks of River Siddha. The elder son Taksha made capital as Takshshila [37] . The younger son Pushkara made capital as Pushkavali [38] . The territory of Satvato near River Yamuna, captured by Shatrughana after defeating Lavanasura, was given to his two sons Subahu and Sharasene. Both made their capital as Madhuvan, now known as Mathura [39] . The eastern part of Kosala was given to Angad and Chandraketu, the two sons of Lakshmana. Angad got the place of Karupath which can be given as the eastern part of Basti and the western part of Gorakhpur district. The younger brother Chandraketu got the place of east of Karupath. He settled there with capital as Chandrakanta. As Chandraketu was a master in wrestling, he was given an epithet of ‘Malla' by Lakshmana. Valmiki Ramayana, therefore, refers Chandrakanta as Malla – Rashtra or Malla – Bhumi too [2] . The two sons of Rama, Kush and Lava, were given the place of Kushavati and Sharavati respectively. Kushavati was located at the end of the eastern part of Karupath and now known as Kushinagar or Kasia. The place of Lava, Sharavati, was near to Kushavati but it cannot be located in present time. Although this arrangement ran for some time, Kush got the added responsibility of Ayodhya after the death of Rama. For a few years, he ruled over Kosala from Kushavati but returned back with Lava on request of the people of Ayodhya. While Kush settled in Ayodhya, Lava settled near to it with capital at Sravasti. The development resulted in Chandraketu getting control over entire eastern part of Kosala. Now the territory under him also included eastern Gorakhpur, Kushinagar and part of Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh with River Sadanira (Big Gandak) forming its eastern boundary. In later period, Chandraketu shifted his capital to Kusavati and his descendants ruled over the entire region for coming years. In Mahabharata (VI.9.46), the Mallas are mentioned as eastern tribes along with Angas, Vangas and Kalingas. It mentions their country as Malla-rashtra (VI.9.34) and shows Bhima conquering the Malla King during Rajysuya yajna of Yudhisthra at Indraprashta (II.30.3). It shows Malla King participating in Mahabharata war from the side of Pandava's, though no casualty of either King or Prince is reported [40] . The Sabha – Parva of Mahabharata refers the Mallas near Kosala as northern Mallas (of Pava) while those away from it and in the southern direction as southern Mallas (of Kusinara).

6.12 The ruling clans of Malla Mahajanpada and Malla gana-sangha

By early 6 th century BC, the Malla ruled country flourished as mahajanpada. The Buddhist and Jain texts mention it as one of the 16 powerful states (solasa mahajanpada) of Indian sub-continent; refer Fig. 3 [41] . Initially established as a monarchy (rajya), the Malla country shifted to oligarchy (gana or sangha) style of functioning in later period. As oligarchy, the Malla had a confederacy of 9 clans (navmallai) with their political centres at Kusinara (4 chief rajas) and Pava (5 chief rajas). There is a mention of nearly 500 Malla Rajas (sanstha or assembly members) during Buddha period. They find their mention as Mallas in Pali text, Mallai in Jain Text and Mallakas in Arthasastra by Chanakya where he refers them as the people living with the title Raja [42] . The ruling tribes of Malla are referred as Suryavanshi Kshatriyas with Vasetthas gotra in Buddhist and Brahmanic literatures. They had their major settlements at Kusinara, Pava, Aniruddhawa , Bhogagamanagara, Anupia, and Khukhundo, which are considered as part of the navmallikis. The other settlements were Sathiawan , Kahaon and Bhagalpur [43] . Considering the presence of Malla titled population in strong numbers in Kakradih and Majhauli, historians like Rahul Sankrityayan, Dr. Rajbali Pandey and Buddhamitra T.M.B. designated these two places as part of the navmallikis related to the Mallas of Pava. Kakradih, famously referred as ‘Mallai Taluka' from the time immemorial, is located on the south of the River Ghaghara (Sarayu) in Mau district and Majhauli is located in Deoria district. The ancient name of both places in Buddhist texts, however, cannot be traced. The Malla territory is believed to be spread from Devgaon-Deurwa of Nepal in north till Mau district of Uttar Pradesh in south covering entire Maharajganj district, Sahjanwa, Barhalganj and border areas of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar [44] . Scholars like P.C. Mukherjee (archaeologist, yr. 1898), Pandit Harinandan Pandey (yr. 1920), Dr. Kashiprasad Jayswal (yr. 1924), Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayana (yr. 1930), Dr. Rajbali Pandey (yr. 1946), D. P. Dubey (yr. 1996), Tripatkacharya Mahopadhyay Bikshu Buddhamitra (yr. 1999) and Kumar Suresh Singh (yr. 2005) traced the lineage of present Malla titled population from the Mallas of Pava with descendants of the Mallas of Kusinara forming a section of the population known as Sainthwar [27] [32] [33] [34] [35] [45] [46] .

Fig. 3: The solasa mahajanpada of ancient India

6.13 The ruling clans of other ganas or sanghas

The ancestors of the majority population of the Sainthwars established oligarchies around the Malla country and the prominent of them were the Shakyas of Kapilvastu, the Koliyas of Ramagrama, the Mauriyas of Pipphalivana, the Bulis of Allakapa, the Lichchhavis of Vaishali and the Videhas of Mithila.

The Shakyas first founded the village of Kapilvastu which also became their capital. Their territory was bounded by the Himalaya in the north and by the Malla country in the northeast. It shared borders with the Koliyas in the east with River Rohini (present Kohna) as the dividing line and with the Kosala Kingdom in the south and west with River Rapti as the dividing line. By the end of the Vedic period, Ulump, Khomduss, Chatum, Devdah, Medloomp, Bedhajja, Sakkar, Samgram, Shilavati, Kapilvastu and Lumbini emerged as major settlements in the Shakya territory. They are described as Gautam gotriya Suryavanshi Kshatriyas with lineage from Ikshvaku King of Ayodhya [47] .

The serpent worshipper Koliya Kshatriyas ruled their country with capital at Ramagrama. Their territory was surrounded by the hills of Nepal in the north, by the Mallas in the northeast, by the Mauryas of Pipphalivana in the east, by the Kosala Kingdom in the south and west with River Anoma (present Rapti) as the dividing line and by the Shakyas in the northwest with River Rohini as the dividing line. The Koliya country was a thin strip of land spread from River Ghaghara in the south till the northern hills of Nepal. Their villages figured in the Buddhist literatures are Uttara, Kakkarapatta, Sajjanela, Haliddavasana, Kundia / Kundi and Sapuga. They are described as Vyaghhapajja (Pali – Vyagh-pajja, Sanskrit – Vyaghra-path, English – Tiger-path) gotriya Nagvanshi Kshatriyas [47] .

The Mauryas major settlement was Pipphalivana. Their territory was surrounded by the Mallas in the north and the east, by River Ghaghra in the south, by the Kosala Kingdom in the southwest with River Anoma (Rapti) as the dividing line and by the Koliyas in the northwest who also acted as dividing line between them and the Shakyas. The Mauryas were Suryavanshi Kshatriyas of Kashayapa Gotra [47] . As per Buddhist literatures, nearly after 140 years from death of Buddha, the daughter of one Mauryan chief, named Mura (meaning the princess of Maurya republic) whose husband died in a skirmish, gave birth to a boy, known as Chandragupta. The boy defeated the Nandas of Magadha Empire with the help of Chanakya and slowly emerged as the first real Emperor of India [48] .

Little information is available about the Bulis of Allakappa except that their country was near to Kusinara and they demanded the relics of Buddha citing their Kshatriya origin.

The Suryavanshi L ichchhavis were settled in north Bihar and part of the Terai belt of Nepal. They were a strong force and powerful than the Mallas.

The Videhas settled near Tirhut (surrounded by Gandak, Kosi and Ganga) with their capital at Mithila. The Videhas were one of the eight important clans forming the Vajjian confederacy.

6.14 Political structure and functioning

In ganas, the head of the Kshatriya families were known as Rajas and their sons are Kumaras (e.g. Lichchhavikumara, Mallakumara, Shakyakumara etc). The decisions, both social and political, were taken through common agreement between clan (or group of clans) members. For this, they had an assembly (Sanstha) which used to meet at a designated place known as Santhagara. The santhagara served the purpose of being social clubs where the ruling clan members used to decide on the topics related to social, political and religious issues. The membership of the assembly was restricted to same clan male adults having a minimum age of 20 years. Once attained a specific age, the Kumaras were inducted in the assembly after their coronation (abhiseka) ceremony. The grand coronation was held near a scared pond (pokhhara) in the presence of all Kshatriya families. The Lichchhvis held their coronation in Vaishali and the actual wordings used in connection with the sacred tank which supplied water for coronation is “Vesali-nagare Gana-rajakulanam abhiseka mangala-pokkharani” (see Abhiskek Pushkarn) [5] . The Mallas of Kusinara held their coronation ceremony near a scared pond in Kushinagar. The place is known as Mukut-Bandhana and Matha Kunwar, refer Fig. 5. The literal meaning of Mukut-Bandhana is putting / tying crown and Matha Kunwar is prince head.

The assembly supported the principle of free election for all-important posts including that of Commander-in-chief , known as ‘sangha/gana Raja'. The other important posts in the assembly were of vargya, grihya, pakshya, gana-titha or sangha-titha, gana-puraka, asanapannapaka, salakagrahpaka and samghyamukhya [50] . In the assembly, t here were definite rules for moving any resolution. Buddhist literatures show that the assembly used to control foreign affairs, entertaining foreign ambassadors and princes and decided on peace and war proposals. According to Buddhist literatures, the Lichchhavis formed a league with Videha and together they were called as Vajjis. The Lichchhavis had once formed a federation with their neighbour Malla. The federal council was composed of eighteen members, nine Lichchhavis and nine Mallas. In the federation, both parties were having equal rights even though Malla were not a great power as Lichchhavis.

The ganas were closely associated with the warrior tribes and named after the ruling Kshatriya clan or King. Literatures report that in ganas, unlike the monarchy, only two Varnas existed. The first and foremost was ruling Kshatriya Varna and the second was Dasa Karmakara Varna. Land, which resembled power, was mostly owned by the political elite Kshatriyas which comprised kings, nobles, ministers, military commanders and other officers. Rice cultivation was the main agricultural activity in ganas and there are evidences of Dasa-Karmakaras (slaves and laborers) in the fields of Raja-Kulas (the land owning Kshatriya Clans). The Jatkas report that many Kshatriyas took considerable interest in learning Vedas and other branches of knowledge by going to Taxila at the age of sixteen or more. As a result, in spiritual field too, Kshatriyas in the form of Buddha and Mahavira made deep penetration and challenged others. The Kshatriyas holding foremost position in society can be seen in famous Jaina myth according to which Mahavira was removed from the womb of Brahmini Devananda and placed in the Kshatriyani Trishala as no Jain Tirthankara can born in a family other than that of Kshatriyas. Buddha too when asked about rebirth opted for Kshatriya family than Brahmin. The superiority of Kshatriyas over others is clearly visible in the dialogue that happened between Buddha and the Brahmin Ambattha. In the dialogue, the latter accepted the superiority of Kshatriyas over Brahmins based on various social conditions of that era [51] . In Kshatriyas too, certain clans developed feeling of being superior to others. The Shakyas considered them superior to other Kshatriyas. Being proud of their Kshatriya blood and its purity, the Shakya assembly of Kapilvastu decided not to give a Shakyan girl to King Prasenjit (Pali - Pasenadi) of Kosala and instead gave a slave girl as Shakyan girl. The decision resulted in their mass scale massacre by King Virudhaka (Pali - Vidudabha, son of King and slave girl). (Even in monarchies of eastern regions, the position of Kshatriyas was superior. The scant respect to Ashoka (in his childhood) and his Brahmin mother in the royal palace of Magadha by other Kshatriya queens because of her origin is one such example.)

The Dasa Karmakara Varna in ganas included various other groups such as Brahmins, traders, farmers, artisans, wage laborers, slaves and so on who all had a sub-ordinate status politically and probably economically and socially too. They were not entitled to use the clan name and did not have rights of political participation. There are hardly any references of gifts of lands to Purohitas and Brahmins and according to Ambatthasutta of the Digha Nikaya, when Brahmin Ambattha visited Kapilvastu, members of the Shakya assembly are said to have laughed at him treating with scant respect.

6.16 Association with Buddha and Mahavira

Mahavira, also known as Vardhamana, was born in the village Kundagrama of Videha in 599 BC in the family of King Siddhartha and queen Trishala. The family of King Siddhartha belonged to the Kashyapa gotriya Jnatrika Kshatriya and that of queen Trishala belonged to the Vasettha gotriya Lichchhavi Kshatriya of Vaishali. Nearly after 36 years of Mahavira's birth, Siddhartha Gautama was born in 563 BC in the family of King Suddhodana and Mahamaya of Kapilvastu. Both parents belonged to Gautam gotriya Kshatriya tribes of the Shakyas.

The Kshatriya assemblies and their countries were closely associated with Buddha, Mahavira and their teachings. Towards their end, both sages raised the historical importance of Malla territory and made it a pilgrimage site for the future generations. According to Jaina Kalpasutra and Parisista-parvam, Mahavira attained nirvana in the courtyard of King Hastipala Malla of Pava (Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh). The last rite was attended by the nine Malla Rajas, the nine Lichchhavi Rajas and the others including the ruling classes of Kosala and Kasi. The moment has been recorded in Kalpasutra as [52] –

‘Kasi Kosalaga, Navmallai, Navlichchhavi

Attharas ganarajyon, amavasaye posdhopawas parita.'

As an honor to the great sage, four beautiful Jain temples were built by the rulers at the spot where Mahavira left his mortal existence [53] . Nearly after 1-2 years of the nirvana of Mahavira, Buddha gave his last discourse to the Lichchhavis of Vaishali and proceeded towards Kusinara. On his journey, he took a halt at Pava and it was the 14 th day nearing full moon. In the evening, he gave discourse to the people. During that, he got request from Chunda metal smith to take next day's meal at his house. On the day of full moon (poornima), after taking the morning food at the house of Chunda, he started feeling sickness due to internal bleeding. Yet he continued with his journey towards Kusinara. By evening Buddha along with Ananda and other monks reached to the outskirts of Kusinara. After crossing the river Hiranyavati, Ananda made arrangement under two Sal trees in the Salavana. The vana was situated to the north side of Kusinara town. The Buddha being very tired lay down on the prepared bed by his head pointing towards the north. That time Buddha was 80 years old and as per English calendar, it was the 8 th or 15 th day of February. He asked Ananda to meet Malla Kings and to inform them about his passing away this night. That time, Malla kings were assembled in their town. After hearing the news, they wept and expressing their grief in various ways reached to the spot with family. There Ananda introduced each Mallian family to Buddha while touching his feet. After clearing some more doubts of monks, Buddha attained his mahaparinirvana.

For the next six days, people from far and wide came to pay their obeisance to the mortal remains of Buddha. During this period, as a respect to Buddha, the Mallas of Kusinara offered garlands of flowers, cloth, perfumes, music, dance, lights and so on. On the 7 th day, eight Malla Kings (attha malla pamokha) from both Malla sanghas laid the body of Buddha by procession to the north of the town, going through the center of town and placed it on the “mukut bandhan” (the sacred place of the Malla's coronation ceremony) situated on the northeast of Kusinara town. On the 8 th day, the body was wrapped in layers of cloth having fragrances and placed on the pyre composed of fragrant woods. The funeral pyre was lighted by Mahakashappa. The relics (dhatu) were collected by the Malla Kings who kept it in their santhagara for the next seven days to honor it. Hearing Buddha's passing away, the neighboring kings sent their ambassador to get a share in the relics. The message send by Mauryas read [52] –

Similar message was sent by all neighbouring kings citing Buddha and their clan as Kshatriyas and therefore rights in the relics of Buddha. The Mallas of Kusinara refused to share the relics. A war like scenario was almost created and looking at the worsening situation, Brahmin Drona intervened. He convinced the Mallas of Kusinara and divided the relics in eight parts. Each group was then given one part who built stupa over it. The eight parties were – 1. Malla of Kusinara, 2. Malla of Pava, 3. Koliya of Ramagrama, 4. Shakya of Kapilvastu, 5. King Ajatshatru of Magadha (Rajgriha), 6. Lichchhavis of Vaishali, 7. Bulis of Allakappa and 8. Brahmins of Vethadvipka (the ancestors of Bhumihar Brahmins). The Mauryas of Pipphalivana arrived late at the site and thus they were given ashes (ember). Brahmin Drona who distributed the relics, took the relic jar (kumbha). Thus 8 Stupas, 9 th Kumbha Stupa and 10 th Angara (Ember) Stupa were built on the remains of Buddha. The Mallas of Kusinara built stupa, known as Ramabhar Stupa or Mukut Bandhan Chaitya, at the site of Buddha's cremation, refer Fig 6.

Fig 6: Mukutbandhan Chaitya or Ramabhar Stupa built by the Mallas of Kusinara (Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh)

6.17 Political fall

The time immediately succeeding the Buddha and Mahavira witnessed fall of the ganas in front of powerful monarchical states like Magadha and Kosala. Two years before the death of Buddha, the Shakya gana of Kapilvastu was devastated by King Vidudabbha of Kosala. After the death of Buddha, Malla gana was conquered by King Ajatshatru of Magadha. Ajatshatru continued his aggression and took war on the Lichchhavis of Vaishali for nearly 16 years in which the latter were finally defeated. As Lichchhavis got support from the Malla of Pava in the war, meaning Pava as a gana too lost its power to Magadha. The reason behind the fall of ganas as independent state was the same which was earlier their strong point i.e. governance through discussion [54] . The secrets which are must to run any government could not have maintained due to gana's democratic nature. They were vulnerable to internal dissension, especially when faced with aggressive monarchs. There were internal clashes between its members due to non-hierarchical nature of their assembly. The entire scenario was aggravated by rise of numerous faiths in ganas as it resulted in weakening of cohesive forces between the Kshatriya populations. Some Kshatriya families carried strong religious sentiments against each other. Although the ganas were conquered by their neighboring monarchs, it seems that an arrangement was made whereby the local administrations were still in the hand of these Kshatriya tribes and in return they paid taxes or revenues to their respective monarchs. The same is evident in Arthshastra, composed by Chanakya of Magadha Empire nearly 150 years after the death of Buddha. It records that the Sanghas are unassailable and advises the king to win over friendly ones.

6.18 Religious inclination of the Kshatriya assemblies

The Kshatriya assemblies and other populations living in their territory had mixed origin. Indo-Aryans or Indo-Europeans were originally the worshippers of natural phenomena and their gods included Dyo (heaven), Prithvee (earth), Surya (sun), Agni (fire), Vayu (air), Usha (dawn) and so on with Indra holding the prominent position. Australoids or Dravidians were followers of animism or totemism and they worshipped snake, elephant and horse and so on. The social interactions between different human groups led to penetration of beliefs from one population to other over a period of time and the best example is Buddha. According to the myths related to the Buddha's birth, his mother Mahamaya (belonging to Sun worshipping tribe) in her dream saw a six tusked young white elephant entering into her body and then after 10 months giving birth to Siddhartha. In many Buddhist tales, Buddha has been referred as a white elephant. Many a times, the elephants are shown as vahanas (vehicles) of Buddha and all Bodhisattavas. Some Buddhist Jataka tales give references of elephant festival and one of them refers about the worshipping of the stone image of an elephant. Before Buddha idols were made by Greeks during Mauryan Empire, the Buddhist population worshipped decorated stone image of elephant (vahna) and riderless horse kept under tree. The decorated elephant resembled Buddha, tree resembled the Bodhi tree under which Buddha got enlightenment and horse resembled departure of his soul or mahaparinirvana. Such worship places are still seen in and around Gorakhpur region or on the land of gana-sanghas although in the name of local village deities like Kali Maiya or Deeh-Baba.

In ganas, the Koliya rajas were snake worshippers (the nagas) and other Kshatriyas were sun-worshippers or Suryavanshis. After rise of Buddhism, Jainism and other nastika faiths, the Kshatriyas and other populations of ganas and neighbouring monarchs showed strong inclination towards these new faiths. As Buddha and Mahavira were of Kshatriya origin, they had a lasting impact on the Kshatriyas of gana / sanghas and that of monarchical Kosala and Magadha. In Malla state, not all Mallas were follower of Buddha and it is this group, who became ancestors of Visen or Bisen Kshatriyas of this region. One story is very significant in this regard. According to the Kusinara Sutta , Buddha once visited the place on the invitation of Kusinara Chief Vajrapani Malla. He stayed in the forests of Baliharan with his 250 disciples. The chief then ordered to assemble one person per family to receive the Lord Buddha in the town failing which they would be fined 500 pieces (of money). Roja, a nobleman of Malla clan, was from the group who were against Buddha but he reluctantly assembled to escape the fine, although latter he became follower of the Buddha [55] . Such stories indicate Kshatriyas getting segregated broadly into following groups, though inter social ties were still not rigid by this time:

• The Buddhist Shakyas who confined themselves within the same tribe (the nastikas)

• The Kshatriyas from all tribes following other heterodox cults (the nastikas)

• The Mallas, Lichchhavis and other Kshatriyas following Jainism (the nastikas, the ancestor of Jain community in these regions)

• The Buddhist Kshatriyas from the tribes of Malla, Koliya, Lichchhavi and some from Maurya-Shakya of Pipphalivana and other clans (the nastikas, ancestor of Malla-Sainthwar group)

• Brahmanic and Shaivite Kshatriyas from the tribes of Malla, Maurya, Lichchhavis and other clans ( the aastikas or orthodox, the ancestors of Visen / Bisen Kshatriyas )

Similar segregation took place in the Brahmins and the other populations of ganas too. The Brahmins were largely divided in Buddhist Brahmins (non-priestly and ruling class of Brahmins like Brahmins of Vethadvipka, the ancestors of Bhumihars) and orthodox Brahmins (the priestly Brahmins).

6.19 As Vratya Kshatriyas in Manusmiriti

According to Manu, a twice born (dvijati) produces on a similar woman (savarna), those who do not observe vrata (sacrifices) and these people who are not entitled to the sacred thread ceremony are called Vratya. Manu listed Malla and Lichchhavi as Vratya Kshatriyas. He listed many other tribes from Brahmin, Kshatriya and Vaishya class as Vratyas and also mentioned about few who were degraded to the level of Shudras or labor class. The smaller Kshatriya tribes of Mauryas, Shakyas and Koliyas did not find their mention in the Vratya list but it is clear that they too had status of Vratyas similar to the dominant Malla and Lichchhavis.

The formation of Vratya class within Indo-Aryan society was the result of large territories occupied by them by 6 th century BC resulting in uneven development of their population with respect to language and cultures, especially those living on the periphery of Aryavrata.

6.20 Religious hostility from orthodox Brahmins and Kshatriyas

By late Vedic period, the Kshatriya and Brahmin class of Indo-Aryan populations residing in the regions of Kuru-Panchala mocked their counterparts living in the region of (present day) Bihar, Bengal, Orissa and Maharashtra for their unrefined Sanskrit dialect (Prakrit), non following of the expanded Brahmanic rituals and following of the aboriginal faiths such as Shaivism, animal worship etc. The Baudhyana Dharma Sutra gives us a clear idea that how the Aryans of Kuru – Panchala viewed the Vratyas of outer regions. According to it, the inhabitants of Anartta (northern Gujarat), of Anga, of Magadha, of Saurashtra, of the Deccan, of Upavrat, of Sindh and of Sauviras are of mixed origin. He, who has visited the countries of Aratta (in Punjab), Karaskara (in South), Pundra (Assam), Sauvira (north of Sindha), Vangas (Bengal), Kalingas (Orissa), or Pranunas (?), shall offer a Punastoma or Sarvaprsthi sacrifice for purification [56] . The rise of Buddhism and Jainism in these regions aggravated the existing difference between orthodox populations and populations following other faiths. Except Vratya Brahmins, who were never tagged as shudras due to following of some rituals of Brahmanism, many tribes belonging to the Vratyas of Kshatriyas and Vaishyas were slowly tagged as Shudras in later period. The Shudra Varna, which was earlier representative of the labor class and aboriginal human population, now included the population that was non-follower of Brahmanism faith but belonged to the warrior and trading classes. This resulted in the birth of economically rich population within Shudra Varna across Aryavrata.

After Gupta Empire and Harshvardhana period, when orthodox Brahmins were putting great thrust on the inclusion of the Shaivites and the followers of other aboriginal orthodox cults in their stream across northern India, they remained hostile towards the Buddhist. The aggression was so high that the Vishnu Purana suggests complete excommunication of the Buddhists and the breaking of all social contacts with them. It says' ‘the Brahmanist follower who dines with a Buddhist goes to hell. The Buddhists are considered as to be unclean, whatever their caste affiliation may have been. A Brahmanist must discourage the Buddhist from associating with him.'

6.21 Fall of Buddhism and merger with Orthodox Brahmanism

Buddhism, which was once a religion of the masses, became extinct nearly after 1,500 years after its foundation. The reasons were the loss of its distinctiveness against Brahmanism and aboriginal cults, rise of different schools, use of Sanskrit as literary medium during Gupta Empire resulting in decline of Pali language, loss of Royal patronage after Harshavardhana and Satvahana dynasty and the rise of Rajputana and bhakti movements. The period of 8 th to 12 th century AD saw attempts to declare Buddha as the 9 th incarnation of Vishnu through the various Puranas such as Harivamsha, Vishnu Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Garuda Purana, Bhavishya Purana and so on. Certain verses declare him as an incarnation of Vishnu who came on the earth to delude the demons not following the Vedic culture so that they can be easily identified and go directly to hell after their death. Such verses represent possibly the finest of conspiracy done against both Buddha and Buddhism by authors of Puranas as on one side they justify the high image of Buddha by linking to Vishnu but on the other side make sure that the masses abandon him and his dharma from the fear of going to hell. The same period also witnessed the rise of Brahmin philosopher Adi Sankara who put great efforts to revive the Vedic culture across India. However while doing so, he took many positive things from Buddhism and incorporated them as a part of the Brahmanism or contemporary Hinduism. All these changes that took place between the 1 st century and 9 th century AD resulted in Buddhism losing its distinctiveness against Brahmanism and the other orthodox cults of the land. The masses slowly abandoned Buddha and Buddhism and shifted to contemporary Hinduism. When this was happening across India, the masses continued with worship of their regional aboriginal Buddhist gods. The next few hundred years saw the Brahmanical sanctity to these Buddhist gods through creation of stories in the form of Puranas just like Buddha was included in the Brahmanic list of gods and related to their chief deity Vishnu. The attempts were successful and masses slowly considered many such gods as part of the Brahmanic list of gods.

The final and major blow to Buddhism came when the Mughals invaded the land in 12 th century AD. The ruthless invasion started from the northwestern front encountered the followers of Buddhism first. It resulted in the destruction of many Buddhist Viharas and Hindu temples after fall of Prithviraj Chauhan and Raja Jaychand in 1192 AD and 1194 AD from the hand of Mahmud Ghori. Nalanda was completely destroyed and many books belonging to Pali and Sanskrit language were burned. In 1200 AD, Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khilji destroyed the monasteries fortified by the Sena dynasty of Bengal which included Vikramshila. The Buddhist sanctuaries near Benares were also destroyed. The Buddhist monks fled to Nepal, Tibet and southern India. In the midst of these developments the Buddhist center of Nath Sampradaya, situated in Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh, finally embraced Shaivism leading to the merger of Buddhism and Hinduism in one fold. The merger was facilitated by Guru Gorakhnath (Buddhist name AnangVajra as per Taranath in “History of Buddhism in India” and RamanaVajra as per M.M. Shastri) who, according to Bengal and Tibetan traditions, was originally a Buddhist [57] . After accepting Shaivism, Gorakhnath put great efforts for merger of the Mahayana sect of Buddhism with Hinduism. This is the time when Buddhist Malla-Sainthwar Kshatriyas, Buddhist Bhumihar Brahmins and other Buddhist population of Gorakhpur and adjoining regions accepted Brahmanism. The Buddhist Kshatriyas of other regions in India, who did not live as assembly or group, were tagged as Shudras and slowly merged with agricultural population of small farmers and labourers. Even though the faith became common after 12 th century AD, the social distance between Brahmins and Kshatriyas of orthodox and their Buddhist counterparts (Bhumihar and Malla-Sainthwar) continued due to rigid nature of class or caste system.

6.22 As Visen (Bisen) Kshatriyas of Madhuban

A small population of the Malla-Sainthwar-Rajput community has descended from Madhav Mall and associated kin, the Bisen of Majhauli / Madhuban of 16 th century AD. The name of this clan is derived from the Sanskrit Viswa means ‘entire' and sena means ‘army'. They claim their descendants from Mayur Bhatta and through him from famous r ishi called Jamadagani. He had three sons from three wives ‘one by a Rajputani, one from Bhuinharin and one from Brahmani'. Certain classes of Bisens claim their descendants from Tikari near Delhi. This clan is much divided, which indicate that the title of Bisen was assumed by an aggregation / assembly of various tribes. The head of the clan is ‘Raja of Majhauli” in Deoria district (the ancient Pava). The Bisen clan is not represented in Rajputana and found chiefly in Allahabad, Benaras, Mirzapur, Jaunpur, Gazipur, Ballia, Gorakhpur, Basti, Azamgarh, Faizabad, Gonda and Bahraich districts of Uttar Pradesh. They are divided in five Gotras – Parasar, Sandil, Batsa, Bhardwaja, and Atri' [58] . The points about Bisen population such as they being an aggregation / assembly of various clans not mentioned in Rajputana, their name resembling “entire army”, the head of the clan as “Raja Majhauli” who held “Malla” title as early as 19 th century are indicative of their lineage from the Kshatriyas of gana-sangha and neighboring regions who all remained follower of their Brahmanism faith and grouped together under the leadership of one of the Malla Raja of Pava when other Kshatriyas grouped under the Mallas of Kusinara and started following Buddhism.

According to B isen Vansh Vatika , Raja Dev Mall was 98th descendant of Bisen clan [59] . He had three sons – Raja Prasad Mall, Madhav Mall and Rai Mall. The division of estate resulted in Prasad Mall getting Majhauli, Madhav Mall getting the area in Mau district and Rai Mall getting the area of Narharpur. Madhav Mall developed the region and named it Madhuban after his name in 1565 AD. He had two sons – Nattha Mall and Fateh Bahadur Mall.

Raja Prasad Mall of Majhauli died in 1564 AD. His minor son Bhim Mall ascended to the throne. At the time of Akbar and after 1567 AD, most Rajput estates of northern India including Majhauli accepted the subordination to Mughal Empire. Raja Bhim Mall died in 1603 AD. His son Narayan Mall was, however, too young to become king and therefore Nattha Mall used to be present in the courts of Jahangir as representative of the Majhauli estate. He has been mentioned as ‘Raja Majhauli' at two places in Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri.

…….On the 21st of the same month I presented Parwiz with a necklace composed of four rubies and one hundred pearls. The rank of Hakim Muzaffar was fixed at 3,000 personal and 1,000 horse, original and extra. I gave 5,000 rupees to Nathu Mal, Raja of Manjholi. 4 A remarkable occurrence was the discovery of a letter from Mirza 'Aziz Koka to 'All Khan, the ruler of Khandesh.……

…. Ten thousand darabs (5,000 rupees) were given to the relations of Mirza Sharafu-d-din Husain Kashgharl, who at this time had come and had the honour of kissing the threshold. On the 5 th Amurdad, to the mansab of Raja Nathmal, which was 1,500 personal and 1,100 horse, an addition of 500 personal and 100 horse was made . On the 7th, Kesho (Das) Maru, who had a jagir in the Sarkar of Orissa, and who had been sent for to Court on account of a complaint 2 against the governor of the Subah of that place, came and paid his respects. He produced as an offering four elephants…….

Empress Nur Jahan started favoring her son-in-law Shaharyar as the heir of Mughal throne and this forced Prince Khurram (Shahjahan) to rebel against Emperor Jahangir. The emperor sent his second son Parvez and Mahabat khan to suppress the rebellion. The latter got good support from his old friend Raja Nattha Mall and his brother Fateh Badaur Mall. Both Malla Zamindar brothers collected nearly 30 boats from various parts of area to cross river Tons (River Tamsa) in Jaunpur [63] [64] . The battle between the armies of Khurram and Mahabat Khan is known as ‘ Jung-e-Tons ' as it was fought on the banks of the River Tons in October, 1624 AD [65] . The three other battle places were Fatehpur Taal Narja , Fatehpur Dodhhara and Fatehpur Taal Ratoya [66] .

One of the important rebellions in Jahangir's court happened in 1626 AD. The most trusted man Mahabat Khan went for rebellion along with 4,000-5,000 Rajputs. He with the help of brave Rajput soldiers arrested Jahangir and ruled for nearly 100 days. The rebellion was then crushed by Nur Jahan and most of the captured Rajputs were sold in the markets of Kabul. The remaining wounded Rajputs along with their families migrated to various parts of northern India like Agra, Meerut, Saharanpur, Dehradun, Kalinjar, Benaras and Gorakhpur. The migration towards Benaras and Gorakhpur was facilitated by Raja Nattha Mall who was a good friend of Mahabat Khan.

6.224 Loss of political power of Bisens of Madhuban / Natthapur (around 1632-1640 AD) [66]

After the death of Prince Parvez and Emperor Jahangir in October 1627, Prince Khurram declared himself the new king of land on 6 th Feb 1628 as ‘Shah-Jahan' meaning the ‘The King of the World'. He appointed Abdullah Khan as the ‘Governor of Bihar' (1632-1639 AD) so as to take the revenge against the Rajputs who supported Jahangir against his rebellion. Abdullah Khan conquered the Gautam Rajputs of Ajamgarh, the Bais Rajputs of Ghosi and the Rajputs of Sidhari, Udamatia and Mau. Most of these Rajputs were forcefully converted into Islam. The forts of Madhuban, Natthapur, Parvezpur and Fatehpur were destroyed. Mohan Pandey, the chief- in charge of security for Natthapur fort, was killed by burning slowly over seven days as he refused to divulge the location of the royal treasury. His samadhi is still available in the Natthapur Kot . The zamindari of Madhuban was seized by Shah Jahan and the descendants of Madhav Mall through Raja Nattha Mall and Fateh Bahadur Malla lost their political power.

6.225 Family enmity between the Bisens of Madhuban, Gonda, Pratapgarh and Majhauli [66]

After Bhim Mall and Nattha Mall, the subsequent kings of Majhauli were Narayan Mall (son of Bhim Mall), Roop Mall, Vikrmaditya Mall, Puran Mall and Buddha Kishor Mall alias Bodh Mall. Aurangzeb, the next Mughal Emperor after Shah Jahan, demanded Jajiya taxes from Bodh Mall and warned in case of non-payment. Bodh Mall asked for help from Nattha Rai of Padrauna as the latter was considered close to Aurangzeb. Nattha Rai neglected his request. Bodh Mall was captured and taken into custody in Delhi. He was forcefully converted to Islam and given the name of Raja Salem. After returning from Delhi, one side of the River Gandak was given to him and the area was named as Salempur. Raja Bodh Mall never returned to Majhauli after becoming Raja Salem as Rani refused to allow him to enter the forts of Majhauli. In his absence, the Rani of Majhauli administered the state with his minor son Bhavani Mall. Raja Salem wished his last rites (shraddh) to be done according to Hindu traditions. After his death (between 1725 -1740 AD), Rani did the same. The Bisens of Madhuban, Kalakankar -Pratapgarh and Gonda were opposed to the idea of shraddh for Muslim Raja and boycotted the ceremony. The family relations between the Bisen pattidars became very weak after the episode of Raja Salem. Slowly the families came on the verge of losing their kinship ties as the three pattidars were not participating in any family event held at Majhauli and vice versa. In subsequent years, Majhauli became more powerful than others. It is recorded that the Majhauli Kings refused to eat bhat with the Chiefs of Gonda, Pratapgarh [67] and Madhuban and therefore unrecognized the kinship ties between them. Later the Bisens of Gonda and Kalakankar were successful in convincing the Raja Majhauli for eating bhat with them and therefore re-establishing their kinship ties. However the Bisens of Madhuban and aligned clan members kept themselves away.

( The period of Bodh Mall and his conversion to Islam is mentioned as 1564 AD (Akbar period) by Sir Roper Lethbridge, however the same is contested by Dr. Rajbali Pandey citing his letter to Rai Nattha Rai of Padrauna in Aurangzeb period [61] [68] . The Madhuban pattidari was completely deleted from the family tree of Majhauli after Bodh Mall episode and therefore it does not find its mention in the work of modern historians. In fact, controversy was also created on the existence of Raja Nattha Mall to erase the kinship ties with Madhuban completely but it remained unsuccessful as his name is mentioned in Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri.)

Mahabat Khan was a prominent General and statesman in the court of Mughal Emperor Jahangir. He was also an old and trusted friend of Jahangir. Frustrated with the continuing conspiracy of Nur Jahan and Asaf Khan, he decided to take action in 1626 AD. As he was a Rajput by birth, he got good support from his trusted Rajput friends and soldiers who all hailed from the upper part of Punjab and Jammu-Kashmir. Sir H. M. Elliot describes the entire event as ‘ Mahabat Khan had cleverly seen through Asaf's designs, and had brought with him 4000-5000 Rajputs, brave men united in one cause. He had also brought the wives and families of many of them, so that, if driven to extremity, they would fight to the last for the lives and honour of themselves and their families [69] .'

Mahabat Khan and his forces attacked the royal encampment when Jahangir and his men were preparing to head to Kabul and were encamped on the banks of the River Jhelum. They successfully took the emperor hostage, however Nur Jahan managed to escape. Mahabat Khan declared himself the new ‘ Emperor of India'. H owever his success was short-lived. Nur Jahan with the help of nobles, who were still loyal to Jahangir, came up with a plan to free her husband. She surrendered herself to Mahabat Khan and once reunited with her husband, put her plan into action. She made Jahangir to convince Mahabat Khan that he was satisfied with the current arrangement as it had freed him from her (Nur Jahan's) clutches. Mahabat Khan believed that he had won over the former emperor, failing to realize that Jahangir was in fact siding with Nur Jahan. Consequently he decreased the Rajput guards that he had placed around Jahangir and prepared to return to Lahore with the captive emperor. Enroute when some of the Rajputs took their horses for grazing, one of the ahadis guard out of the two was killed. Not getting the satisfactory explanation, a plan of attack was designed by ahadis. Nearly 800-900 Rajputs were slain that day including their most prominent leaders [70] . Meanwhile Nur Jahan arranged for an army to meet them en route to Lahore. In the ensuing battle, Nur Jahan's forces were victorious and Jahangir was freed from captivity. In the battle, Rajputs were slaughtered like goats and few who were captured were sold in the markets of Kabul. An estimated, nearly 2000-3000 Rajputs were killed in this battle and others were wounded heavily. Mahabat Khan's brief reign lasted approximately 100 days.

The rebellion of Mahabat Khan has been covered in detail by various historians but the wounded Rajput soldiers and their families have been almost forgotten by them. They do not find any mention in the main course of history except in the local traditions and folk stories of the regions where they migrated and settled. According to these stories, the wounded Rajputs along with their families migrated towards various parts of northern India like Agra, Meerut, Saharanpur, Dehradun, Kalinjar, Benaras and Gorakhpur. The migration towards Benaras and Gorakhpur was facilitated by Raja Nattha Mall who was a good friend of Mahabat Khan. Nattha Malla was now zamindar of Natthapur / Madhuban and retired from the responsibilities of Majhauli. In migrated Rajputs, the prominent families belonged to Gaud-Das, Rawat, Sohar Rathod, Mauli - Chauhan, Bhati, Mewati, Parmar, Kotaria, Sisodia and so on. The families lived by suppressing their identity from the fear of Mughal forces and the Rajput zamindars who all were aligned with the Mughal Empire and thus forming a small endogamous group. Meanwhile, Shahjahan (Khurram) became new Mughal Emperor after Jahangir. The Bisens of Madhuban faced wrath of the new emperor as Nattha Mall and his brother earlier supported Mahabat Khan to crush his rebellion against Jahangir. Madhuban lost its zamindari and the migrated Rajputs purchased small zamindaris from the Majhauli estate for their livelihood.

The Gaharwar (also known as Raikar) families of Malla-Sainthwar-Rajput community traced their lineage from the family of Raja Jaychand of Kannuaj. The defeat and death of Jaychand in 1194 AD from the hand of Mahmud Ghori forced Manikchand to shift towards Benares. He settled in the region which was at the bottom of Vindhyachal Mountains and south of Allahabad (present Raj Kantit) . Manikchand had four sons namely Tal Deo, Ala Deo, Lakshman Deo and Premjeet. In the lineage of Ala Deo, was King Gudan (Gadan) Deo, who established the Kantit-Bijaipur Raj in 1401 AD (or 1542 ??). The descendants of Gudan Deo also ruled over Manda and Daiya estates in Allahabad district [72] [73] . In the lineage of Gudan Deo at Kantit came Dadu Rai. He was very famous and associated with folk song kajli / kajri [74] . Dadu Rai was killed by Ali Quli Khan Zaman and Bahadur Khan in 1564 AD. The queen committed sati. The entire region faced atrocities from the Khan brothers. Many Kshatriya families were devastated, displaced and some even took shelter in the nearby forests. The Khan brothers were killed by Akbar in June 1567. The young Bhupal Rai was taken to Majhauli Raj by his uncle (Hindi - Fufa) Madhav Mall. Once young, he joined the Mughal army and got the title of Rai for his valorous work. He, Rai Bhupal Rai, was designated as an officer for the Mughal artillery. Soon he was able to make some 50 close associates and all these people were inducted in the Majhauli army by then King Bhim Mall. The group helped Majhauli to defeat their enemies. In return for their valorous work, the Majhauli king gave Zamindari of 5 villages to Bhupal Rai, the chief of the group. That time, the Makwani kings were ruling the area of Sidhua Jobna. Bhupal Rai defeated the Makwani kings and established a small estate. This happened around 1580 – 1590 AD [75] . S. N. R. Rizvi mentioned the period of Bhupal Rai as 1650 AD, which looks wrong considering 4 rulers of Padrauna after him till Rai Nattha Rai of 1681 AD [76] .

In the lineage of Rai Bhupal Rai came Rai Jagat Rai, Rai Vasdev Rai, Rai Vanmala Rai, Rai Harihar Rai and then Rai Nattha Rai who attended the courts of Aurangzeb from 1681 AD. He helped Padrauna to get recognized as Princely estate in 1686 AD. He also received a grant of 33 villages in Padrauna tahsil yielding annual revenue of Rs. 5,500 [76] . Bhup Narain Rai was son of Nattha Rai and zamindar of Padruana till 1760 AD. The territory of Padrauna expanded further after Majhauli King gifted 12 villages to him as a respect to Ramdatt Rai (brother's son) who helped Majhauli to defeat the Mughal army but died in the war showing his great valor. Ginu Narain Rai was zamindar of Padrauna from 1760 till 1795 AD. He helped his friend Fatteh Shahi of Hussainpur, district Shahabad of Bihar (and Raja Chet Singh of Benaras) in his rebellion against East India Company [77] . In the records of Company Zalim Singh, Ginu Narain (Gehnu) Rai, Prithvipal Singh and Fatteh Sahi are recorded as prominent zamindars who took active part in the rebellion [78] [79] . After Ginu Narain Rai, the Padrauna estate was divided between his two brothers - Ram Narain Rai and Meharban Rai.

6.241 Dubari Rai participating in Indian rebellion of 1857 – the Kachhi Fansi

During Indian rebellion of 1857, the zamindar Madan Gopal Rai (first branch) helped the British Empire to crush the rebellion under the direction of Ishwari Pratap Rai. Opposite to this, Dubari Rai (second branch) helped the rebellion against the British rule. He was sentenced to death by hanging from a banyan tree near the temple of ‘Hatthi Mai' situated near Chhawani, north to Kubersthan road. The hanging is known as ‘Kachhi Fansi' [80] . After the rebellion, the entire property was seized by the British officer Mr. Ward and his zamindar brother Rai Raghupati Rai was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Madan Gopal Rai did not have successor. Therefore, on 16th August 1880, he declared Udit Narain Rai (son of Raghupati Rai, second branch) as heir of the Padrauna estate. On 8th Feb 1886, he initiated the process of his nomination on government records. After a small court battle with Vindhyachal Prasad Rai, on 8 th May 1891 Udit Narain was finally declared as legal heir of Padrauna estate. He was conferred with the title of ‘Raja' by the British Government.

6.25 Social grouping of the Bisens of Madhuban, the Gaharwars of Padrauna and the Rajputs associated with Mahabat Khan's rebellion

After conversion episode of Raja Bodh Mall alias Raja Salem, the Bisens of Madhuban and associated kin lost their kinship ties with Bisens of Majhauli and other Bisens. They were slowly isolated by the powerful Majhauli estate on both political and social front and referred them as Malla of the Malla – Sainthwar population. It should be noted that the area under Madhuban already had large ‘Mall' titled population (Sainthwar) related to the ancient Pava. The Gaharwars of Padrauna, who were close relatives of Madhuban Bisens and whose ancestor Nattha Rai denied help to Raja Bodh Mall, faced a major financial crisis in the reign of Rai Dhanu Rai (around 1765 AD). The Gaharwar too faced ire of Majhauli. This way, both Madhuban and Padrauna families of very low population got separated from mainstream Kshatriyas / Rajputs. The Rajput families related to Mahabat Khan's rebellion were already living as endogamous group. The three groups established social ties with each other and continued their living as zamindars.

6.26 Clubbing of Bisens, Gaharwars and Rajputs with Malla-Sainthwar Kshatriyas in the census of British India

Nearly after 150 years of Raja Salem episode, the three groups (BisenMalla, Gaharwars and Rajputs) were considered as Malla-Sainthwar in society. The first census of British India completed in 1865 as “Census of North – West Provinces 1865” clubbed the three groups with ancient Malla-Sainthwar Kshatriya populations. Together all these populations were labelled as agricultural caste due to the Buddhist ancestry of majority population and absence of social ties with Brahmanic or orthodox Kshatriyas.

[24] Knox, K. N., (1919). Final Report on the Revision of Settlement in the Gorakhpur district, United Province, Tahsils Padrauna, Hata and Deoria, p. 41. Allahabad: Superintendent Government Press, United Province

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